My Sanctuary
by Rukia Blood-Moon
Summary: Dark Brotherhood Questline Spoilers. They're all dead... Her family... Her SECOND family... Dead all dead... Aralene Fire-Fall, Wood Elf, Murderer, Dragonborn, Sole Survivor is sure that she had lost her family again.


**Very long one-shot about the Dark Brotherhood quest Death Incarnate with a crap ton of Dragonborn OC's and a wolf. Yes, there are nine Dragonborn characters, not all of them mentioned in the story. Why? Because I played as three different races in Oblivion (Nord, Wood Elf, Khajiit) who I ended up calling the Champion of Cyrodiil trio and I wanted to have their descendants become the Dragonborn. **

**I decided to make up nine of them because, you know Nine Divines and all that (Also fot the term Dragonborn of Nine from Knights of Nine cuz I can't think of any original name to call them. Dragonborn Crusaders? Bleh.). And because I have a hard time believing that my character (Saskia, one of the youngest of the lot) would defeat a giant ass Dragon-God because she's such a tiny kitty and would probably get crushed by Alduin's tail even with the assistance of her three ghost lackeys. **

**I also wanted at least one Dragonborn character in each faction (the only reason most of them are in the Brotherhood is because they have the most entertaining quests to me, besides the Daedric quest). Most of the Dragonborn are Khajiit's, just because I love cats, actually seven out of nine are… DON'T JUDGE ME! So anyway, Akatosh's and my defense when people ask "WHY DA HELL DO YOU HAVE SO MANY DRAGONBORN CHARACTERS?!" Our response will be, "WE UPPED OUR STANDARDS!"**

**But there I go again. If you managed to stomach this author's note, go ahead and read this slightly depressing Fanfic. Yup, it's just one of those days.**

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_They're all dead…_

The simple thought reverberated through her skull. The Bosmer assassin looked at the charred remains of the Falkreath sanctuary, the suffocating smell of ash and smoke clogging her lungs. Not that she cared anyway. All was lost.

_Her family… Her SECOND family… Dead all dead…._

Aralene Fire-Fall, one of the Dragonborn of Nine, felt completely numb. Losing her first family had been hard enough for her. She still remembered the last look in her parents eyes, wide-eyed with panic and pain-filled, right before the werewolf tore its claws through their chests. _"RUN!" _Their eyes silently screamed. She did run. Like the cowardly ten-year old she was, she fled through the forests of Valenwood with the beast pursuing her. She remembered the sensation of rough, thick claws digging into her shoulder blades, leaving a scar that lingered up to this day. Aralene had finally managed to evade the beast by climbing up a tree, luckily with some guards intervening, killing the beast. She was safe.

_**But her parents were still dead. Nothing could change that.**_

How long ago was it… an hour? A day? It seemed like forever since she heard Festus's battle cry as he launched a volley of fireballs at the front of the sanctuary before she even realized what was going on.

The Penitus Oculatus. They attacked the sanctuary.

A sudden burst of anger devoured the numb feeling, leaving her shaking with rage. Why did this have to happen to them? Why couldn't she have been strong enough to kill them all and save her family? When she first saw the amour sporting the Red Diamond, her instincts screamed at her to flee. But she stayed behind. She didn't want to see her family die again. She didn't want to go through the agony of losing her family a second time.

_But they all died anyway._

The thought made her freeze. Anger drained away from her until it was replaced by pure despair. She failed her family. Again. She collapsed to her knees, shaking and hugging herself like a scared little girl. Sobs racked her body Her family… every single member of her family. Gone.

Festus Krex. Grumpy old Imperial with a large vocabulary that the younger members of the sanctuary had a hard time comprehending. Excellent mage, preferring to introduce him to his victims before sending their soul to the void. He died from a volley of arrows, permanently pinning his body to a tree, forever in the pose of throwing his hands up to protect himself.

Veezara. Friendly argonian man, preferring silence just like Aralene instead of wasting his time uttering empty words. His actions spoke louder than any shout Aralene could of uttered herself, loyalty to the Brotherhood unending. He fell from the blade of an enemy attacker after he and Aralene were pressed back into the entrance hall.

Arnbjorn. Gruff Nord man with wolfish characteristics. He had a bad attitude towards the newer members but respected the orders his wife gave him. He perished when fighting a large group of the Oculatus force before they overwhelmed him.

Gabriella. A mysterious Dunmer elf, sticking to the shadows even when she wasn't on the job. She directed conversation away from her and enjoyed the peace of solitude, but enjoyed the company of her fellow brother's and sister's whenever she wasn't out on a contract. Aralene didn't witness her death, but the bloody gap on her chest and blood dripping from the sword of an intruder gave her a clear hint on what had transpired.

Babette. A Breton Un-Child who had seen much and killed much in her lifetime, but still retained an innocent air around her. She usually stayed in the sanctuary, brewing potions and concoctions instead of assassinating but her well-hidden prowess had been clear to Aralene the moment she laid eyes upon her. Aralene assumed the vampire child had been slaughtered and thrown into the fire alongside her pet frostbite spider Lis or crushed by falling debris of ceiling.

Nazir. Sarcastic Redguard who handed out contracts along with some sly or biting remarks. Deadly with a scimitar, many have died under his blade for the glory of his Dark Family. She found him fighting alongside another unknown family member, but he disappeared in the lethal flames that crowded the sanctuary.

Astrid. The Murderess and head of the dark brotherhood. She treated the members of the Dark Brotherhood as if they were members of her own family, guiding and protecting them all. She disappeared half-way through the attack, Aralene remembered hollowly. Where did she go?

Morgan Ice-Heart. Derpy Nord woman who had a permanent goofy grin on her face, an odd feature for an assassin. Although overly cheerful and annoyingly clingy, she was a fine addition to the family, eager to please and bring respect and fear to the faction. A wall of fire separated her from her fellow Dragonborn, most likely burning her alive in the intense flames.

Kalicka. Cold-hearted assassin, a loner from her fellow family members with a hidden soft side that only showed itself when she was with her young daughter Rivkah. She proved loyalty to the family, even thought after being named listener to the Dark Brotherhood and holding immense power as one of the Dragonborn's, she still respected Astrid's word as law. She didn't show up when the Penitus attacked. Did she… did she betray the Dark Brotherhood?

Aralene shook her head vigorously. No. She had been too loyal, pouring to much effort into restoring the Dark Brotherhood to its formal glory. What would she gain from tearing it down?

Her pitiful cries continued and she shook her head again, this time more softly. What would it matter anyway? The Brotherhood was done. Finished. Destroyed. Aralene would be the sole survivor… again. Pain twisted like a dagger in her chest and she let out a dark chuckle. Savior of the world… hah, what a laugh. How could she defeat a dragon-god if she couldn't even save her family? She might as well keel over and die because she would probably fail the world and Alduin would kill them all and….

Aralene's Dragon Spirit shifted restlessly inside her. _Do not think such thoughts, Dovahkiin. _Malahheyv scolded. _Think like this and you have already lost the battle._ Aralene wiped tears away from her pitch-black eyes and her regular scowl returned to her face. "Why shouldn't I?" the Wood Elf demanded, "I've just lost my family a second time, my home is crumbling, and I'm all alone again. Why shouldn't I cry?" _Because you are above such things, my little Dovah. _Her Dragon-Self replied matter-of-factly. Then she continued, _You can allow yourself to be buried in the crumbling ash that surrounds you and let it consume you. Let the unstable debris crush you. Or you could rise up and rebuild instead of letting yourself be buried along with this sanctuary. _

Aralene scowl deepened and she let out a 'tch' noise. "Rebuild? What are you talking about? I'm the only one left, Kalicka was the listener, the only hope the Dark Brotherhood had and she's gone. No one else is here, how am I supposed to _rebuild!_" She finished by yelling, leaving her breathing heavily.

She swept a stray piece of auburn hair behind her ear and waited for Malahheyv to speak. Moments ticked by, before the Dragon's voice came again, this time holding slight amusement. _You are in grief, little Dovah. You are not acting like our current self, Aralene Fire-Fall. Aralene would have picked herself up, shook all the ash off her and start anew. No need to let your heart die along with the faint embers of this sanctuary. _Aralene opened her mouth to speak, but the Dragon continued on, _Things can fall until they are nothing, but they can also rebuild. Besides, _the Dragon added, _Ausnahved and Beynahkrii wouldn't allow their mortal selves to be so easily beaten. _

Aralene froze, her head eyes widening. She couldn't possibly mean-

"-lene!" A distant voice called, searchingly. Her hands began to shake. I-impossible. Could it really be-?!

"_Fus Ro Dah!" _The power of the _thu'um _shook the sanctuary, surprisingly not bringing the ceiling down on top of her. Boulder's were pushed out of the entryway, from the entrance room to the main room. A woman clad in Dark Brotherhood armor darted out into the clearing, gaze wildly searching the room until her ice blue eyes met Aralene's black ones.

"Aralene!" The too familiar voice said again and rushed to Aralene's side, kneeling down next to her. The woman tore off her masked cowl, revealing her blue-black and creamy white skin. She had a deep cut in one of her cheeks, dried blood flaking the wound. However, this didn't stop her face from breaking into a grin, all the tension seeming to leave her shoulders. Then a concerned look came over her face again.

"Ary, are you all right? Can you stand? Babby, I think we need your help over here!" The other Dragonborn yelled over her shoulder. Aralene stared at her, still in a daze. "Morgan… h-how… you're alive." She finished her sentence lamely.

Morgan's eyes returned to hers. "Yeah. So is Babette and Nazir. I don't know what happened to Kalicka though-" Morgan broke off with a surprised yelp when Aralene tackle-hugged her. Tears began to stream down her cheeks and she whispered in a hoarse voice. "You're alive. Babette… Nazir… you're all alive." The Bosmer buried her face into the crook of her friends neck. "I was so scared." Aralene admitted through the leather, muffling her voice. She knew she would probably deny everything she said when questioned, but at the moment she didn't care. She was so happy, even though half of the Brotherhood was gone, that she wasn't the only one left. That she wasn't alone. "I thought I was the only one left…." She murmured.

After Morgan got over her initial shock, she wrapped her arms around the tiny Bosmer and gently rocked her back and forth. "It's all right." She said soothingly to the crying girl. "It's going to be all right." A throat cleared from behind him and Aralene naturally decided to shove Morgan off her.

Babette was standing a few feet away from Morgan, holding some bottles. Her eyebrows were raise in a questioning manner, but the corner of her lips were twitching. "I, ah, hate to interrupt your touching moment, but I need to tend to your burns." The Breton said and Aralene scowled, feeling her normal personality returning to her.

"We were NOT having a touching moment." Aralene mumbled hotly. Morgan huffed indignantly and crossed her arms. "What's with the sudden denial, Ary? I thought we were having some serious chemistry back there…." Aralene whacked the Nord on the head. Snickers came from behind Morgan and Aralene saw that Nazir was standing next to Babette with a smirk on his face. His beard was singed around the edges and his Redguard clothes was covered in soot but he didn't look to worse for wear.

"Good to see you made it out, Aralene. How did you even escape the flames while stuck in here?" The man asked. Aralene shrugged slightly. "I was running through the top half of the sanctuary blindly when I saw that the stained glass picture of Sithis was gone, so I jumped through the opening and stayed in the pool. The smoke stayed about a foot above the water so I could still breathe."

"I got out that way too, but I managed to get out of the Sanctuary before the entranced was closed off." Nazir hesitated slightly, then asked. "Did you happen to find Kalicka?" Aralene's body went rigid. "She wasn't with you?" She asked, struggling to keep her composure.

"She was right behind me when we were in the Night Mother's room but she disappeared when the coffin fell into the pool." Nazir told her. _I've been swimming with a corpse…? _Was Aralene's first thought, then, _Kalicka IS dead…. All really is lost…._

Babette didn't seem to think so. In fact, she whirled around so suddenly to face Nazir she made Morgan jump and almost fall onto her back. Babette's dark eyes were wide with sudden hysteria. "Wait, you're saying you lost her? In the Night Mother's room?" Aralene frowned. Why did she sound so excited?

Nazir didn't get it at first, too. "Yeah, she was. But then- Wait, you're not thinking…." Simultaneously, the four assassins gazes turned toward the pool where the Night Mother's coffin was submerged. They all rushed over to the coffin and Babette knelt down by the water's side. She put her ear near the water's edge as if she was listening to something. Then her head snapped up and she faced the remainder of her family, eyes sparkling with unshed tears of happiness and relief.

"I hear a heartbeat down there! She's inside the coffin!" She exclaimed, nearly bouncing in excitement. Nazir's eyebrows rose and he let out a laugh that echoed in the Sanctuary. "Thank Sithis! I always knew that she'd find some way out of this mess." The red guard then lumbered down into the pool and gripped the bottom of the coffin.

"Aralene, Morgan, can you two move the debris? I got the coffin." He said. The two Dragonborn woman waded into the water and began to clear the rubble. After about twenty minutes or so, they finally managed to rid the pool of most of it then they switched to helping Nazir lift the thing out. Babette flitted around the water's edge.

"Hurry, Nazir! I'm telling you, she's in there!" She said, watching the coffin worriedly. Nazir gritted his teeth and began to haul it up the slope of the pool and growled out at the Breton. "I'm going… as fast… as I can, you stupid she-devil. I don't see you… helping…." He huffed out.

"Oh yeah, ignore the ladies efforts." Morgan mumbled next to Aralene, although her eyes still sparkled with undying mirth. "I'm not exactly built for manual labor." The Vampire retorted, a smile twitching at the corner of her lips from Morgan's remark. Then she urged, "Now come on, you've almost got it."

"One more… pull." The three murderers finally managed to pull the coffin out of the water and set it upright next to the pool. Water immediately began flooding out, making Aralene feeling slightly nervous. "Please don't tell me she drowned inside of there." She mumbled to herself.

"Yeah! There…" Nazir said triumphantly rubbing his shoulders. Babette bounded over to the coffin and looked it over. "Can you get it open?" She asked, her gaze not leaving the coffin. Nazir assumed she was still talking to him and he nodded.

"I think so. Just hold on a moment." Aralene held in her breath, prepared to see her friend and superior fall out of the coffin along with the corpse of the Night Mother. Instead, a Khajiit woman with red-black fur stumbled out of the coffin with a wild look in her dark eyes.

Kalicka's knees trembled from her weight and would of fell face first into the ground if it weren't for Nazir. "Whoa, whoa, whoa. Slow down. It's all right. You've been through a lot. Maybe you should just sit down for a bit." He said comfortingly to the Khajiit, rubbing her shoulder blades lightly.

Kalicka ignored his advice and got to her feet. Aralene almost flinched at the near-mad look in her eyes, in the place of her normal cold, pitiless gaze. She gripped Nazir's shoulders with her charred gloves and spoke so rapidly, Aralene barely understood them.

"I have to speak with Astrid! She's here, in the sanctuary! Follow me." The Dragonborn didn't wait for them and awkwardly half-ran, half-limped towards the entrance of the sanctuary. "She's here? By Sithis, I thought we'd lost her." He turned to the rest of the assassins. "Let's go!"

They hurried after their listener. Nazir led them into Astrid and Arnbjorn's old room. Aralene noticed that the wardrobe that used to be against the wall was in ruins, revealing a hidden passage way. _How haven't I noticed that before?_ She wondered to herself.

Kalicka was kneeling next to a burnt corpse surrounded by candles with a single nightshade next to it. _What the… is that the Black Sacrament? _Kalicka appeared to be at loss for words. "Astrid…" She whispered, eyes filled with sadness.

_Astrid?!_ Aralene looked at the burnt body with disbelief. The 'corpse' coughed and rasped, "Shh…. Please. There is much… I have to say. And not much time." She said between coughing fits. It hurt Aralene to see her leader like this. What was once a strong, beautiful woman, was now a scorched body inches away from death.

"I'm sorry." Astrid continued. "So very sorry. The Penitus Oculatus… Maro…. He said that by giving you to them, he would leave the Dark Brotherhood alone. Forever." All the breath left Aralene in a rush. _All this…. Everybody's death…. Festus, Veezara, Gabriella, Arnbjorn…. Their death's were caused by Astrid? _

"By Sithis, I was such a fool. All of this… it's all my fault. You are the best of us, and I nearly killed you… as I've killed everyone else…" Aralene expected Kalicka to be furious, curse Astrid to the void, end her life right there, instead she just ducked her head. "You will be judged by Sithis in the Void. I pity you." It would have been a biting remark in a different tone, but Kalicka's voice held so much sadness that she believed she truly did sympathize with Astrid.

_Why do you feel sorry for her?! _Aralene wanted to scream. _She killed almost all of us! She sent you to die, where you would have to leave your daughter all alone in the world and never to see your sibling ever again! Why? _Aralene tried to feel angry, but couldn't. She was tired of raging on about the tragedy she just went through. She just felt completely drained.

Astrid's lips moved again to form angry sounding words, but the Bosmer just tuned her out. She knew what was coming next. The candles, the nightshade, the dagger… the body. Aralene turned around and leaned against the wall. Soon, Astrid stopped talking and she heard the sound of a dagger being picked up. She closed her eyes and heard the last strangled cry her former boss uttered. "Thank you…"

Aralene felt a hand touch her wrist and she opened her eyes to see Babette standing next to her. The little Vampire girl had tears streaming down her cheeks and her bottom lips trembled. Aralene had forgotten that even though Babette had had three hundred years of experience, she was still just a little girl on the inside and out. She gently took the little girl's hand and led her away from Astrid's body.

Morgan followed behind them despondently, uncharacteristically silent. Aralene glanced over and studied the woman's blue eyes. They were difficult to read, but she appeared to be mulling over what has transpired. Or perhaps she was having an internal conversation with her Dragon Spirit, Ausnahved. Suffer. Fury. Black. Her dragon name was fitting at the moment.

Nazir and Kalicka were the last to leave Astrid's side. Aralene glanced back and saw a pained expression on Nazir's face. He wasn't taking Astrid's betrayal too well. Kalicka however had a hardened expression on her face. Her eyes shone with her usual angry, cod expression. She marched past all of them and returned back to the Night Mother's coffin. Aralene followed her, not knowing what else to do. What was there to do? Their sanctuary was in ruins, Astrid sold them out, they failed at killing the real emperor. What now?

_I guess its back to the woods for me…. _Nazir's voice jarred her out of her thoughts. "By Sithis, what a mess. I guess this is the end." He said dejectedly. To everyone's surprise, Kalicka waved her hand dismissively and said. "Not exactly. The Night Mother has spoken to me again."

"What? Well, what did she say?" Morgan jumped in and added. "Yeah, Kally, don't leave us hanging!" Kalicka ignored Morgan, making her pout like a kicked puppy. She turned to Nazir and said, "I must speak with Amaund Motierre once more." _Motierre? Again? But doesn't that mean…._

Nazir mimicked her thoughts. "Amaund Motierre? But that would mean…" Kalicka nodded in confirmation. "The contract is still on. The true Emperor must be assassinated."

"You mean… there's still a chance? But how? Our plan has gone to ruin, everyone is dead, the family…." "Our family lives on, Nazir." Kalicka said firmly. "You have to trust me."

Nazir nodded slowly, a small smile playing on his lips. "Hmph. All right, then. Go, my Listener. Find out what that slimy bastard Motierre has to say, then send the Emperor to Sithis."

"But when you're done, there's no use returning here, is there? I was thinking… the Dawnstar Sanctuary. We could make a proper home there. And listen, when you're finished with this Emperor business, meet us there. I'll find some way to move the Night Mother. Don't worry. Now go!" He said finally with a shooing gesture.

The cat woman snorted and said. "All right. But don't leave just yet. I want my daughter, Rivkah to travel to the Sanctuary with you. I don't think any child of mine is going to be safe staying in Falkreath with the Penitus about."

Nazir nodded. "We'll do, Listener." Kalicka disappeared up the steps and moments later she heard the black door open and close. Nazir turned to them with a smirk and said. "Pack your bags girls. We're moving." Babette grinned. "I was hoping you'd say that."

After they finished gathering what little belongings they could salvage (which wasn't much) they walked outside the sanctuary to ambush any unsuspecting carriage drivers. As soon as Aralene set foot outside the Sanctuary, she was tackled to the ground by a furry black shape which proceeded to shower her face with happy, slobbery kisses. "Lupus!" She said, feeling relieved that her wolf companion had survived the attack, and slightly guilty that she hadn't thought of him once during the fire.

She heard sniffles from behind her, and she and Lupus turned to see Morgan wiping tears from under her eyes. She was watching Aralene and Lupus with fake tears in her eyes. "I just love happy endings!" She said, rubbing her eyes. Babette laughed and turned to Nazir who 'acquired' a carriage from a passerby. The Night Mother's coffin was secured inside a wagon attached to the seating part of the carriage leaving room for them to sit.

"Are we ready to hit the road?" She asked the Redguard. He grinned and gestured for them to take their seats. "Let's do this." He said. Babette, Morgan, Aralene, and Lupus jumped up into the carriage and started the long journey to Dawnstar.

To their home. To their Sanctuary.

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**Crappy ending, I know. Couldn't think of anything to put in the place of that so….**

**BREAK DANCE! *Spazzes out* I haven't written in a while, and constructive criticism is good for the soul :D**


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